Making Sense of Coaching

How to set up a coaching programme in your organisation – hints and tips.

Brief History of Coaching

Everyone seems agreed on one thing – coaching works. It was hailed as the development tool for the ‘noughties’ and the evidence to support this intensifies as study after study shows positively and conclusively that coaching does make a difference.

This has sparked a new industry which has gathered pace and grown in an ad- hoc – or as strategists would say ‘organic’ way. This makes for an interesting melting pot of providers and regulators. As someone buying coaching services - whether setting up a coaching programme or simply appointing a coach to a person in your organisation it is difficult to know where to start. Question such as: How are coaches qualified? Can coaches be qualified? Which ones are credible? What is the difference between all the big coaching associations? What if I have a coach who isn’t qualified? Will it be expensive? Where can I find a coach when I need one?

Selecting a Coach

It is truly a minefield – there are so many individuals offering their services as business coaches, performance coaches, career coaches, executive coaches, life coaches – knowing where to start can be fraught with difficulties as a qualification is not needed and the industry is not regulated. Anyone can call themselves a coach. Some coaches operate perfectly ethically and sensibly without being qualified or affiliated to any organisations. Conversely, having a coach who is a member of an organisation doesn’t guarantee their ability to deliver what you need.

Some simple tips can help you overcome this.

As the coaching industry grows and develops shape there are some key players emerging – Association for Coaching (the first body to develop a global framework), European Coaching Foundation, European Coaching and Mentoring Council. On top of this there are coaching qualifications – ranging from Masters to diplomas and anything in between. There are many in the coaching world that say it is the relationship and the person that is more important than the qualification – which is true of any profession. Personal recommendations can make all the difference – but don’t always provide the easy option. A coach who works well in one organisation or with one client, may not be suitable for your needs – but it does give you a good start.

Getting a programme started

Marketing

Once you have established what you need a coaching programme to achieve and where you are going to look for your coaches, then the ‘marketing’ can start. Many coaches talk about clients not understanding what a coach is for – there may be organisation wide whispers about coaching being for the ‘naughty boys’ or conversely, ‘high flyers’. If you have the luxury of an obvious and clear reason – such as introduction of a new structure, new roles, changing priorities etc, it is easier to explain to the organisation what the coaching programme is there to achieve and what coaching is and is not. Managing those expectations is vital – especially where people may be feeling vulnerable.

Matching

When you have met with a range of coaches you can either match the coach to client yourself or as is happening more often – let the client select from a pool of potential coaches – either on paper or with short meetings known as ‘chemistry’ meetings.

Contracts

Being clear on confidentiality issues, contact out of sessions, evaluation, reporting methods etc, is important for the coach to know from the start. Most coaches will prepare a short proposal covering these issues.

Best practice is for coaches to prepare a short contract with their client too and they should be preparing objectives with the client at the start of each session.

Following Up

As the buyer of coaching services you will want to know if the coaching is working, without breaking any confidentiality boundaries. There has been much debate around the return for your investment, and it goes back to establishing clear outcomes and putting in place a process for knowing if these have been achieved. There are no hard and fast rules here, simply what is going to work for you. Coaching is an expensive development tool and you will need to show that is was worth every penny.

And that brings us back to the beginning – study after study shows coaching does make a positive difference to people, teams and the organisation. If you’d like to know more or discuss any of the issues addressed in this short introduction, by all means give me a call.